Reformed
by stillcringingon
Summary: A month after Asura was assumed to be dead, Death calls Maka, Soul, and the others for a small talk to inform them that his older son had the 'kishin' taken out of his soul and isn't evil anymore. They are assigned a special mission to help reform Asura so that he can fit in and follow his new wish of staying sane and removing his constant fears. (I DO NOT OWN THE IMAGE)
1. Chapter 1

(Crona is a male in this story... sorry for the people who prefer Crona to be female. I personally like to address Crona as androgynous (or both genders), but I don't know what to call Crona (such as him, her, etc.) in that case. I'm a bit uncomfortable with writing 'it' or 'they' as well. I'm going with the anime on this one and calling Crona a boy. Also, I don't own Soul Eater or any of the characters. Thanks for taking your time to read this note. Please Enjoy! ^^)

(Also there are some weird theories in this story. I tried to make some to help support the reason in the actions of some events, so sorry if it doesn't make sense or follow the show's guidelines. Just pretend it does lol)

(THIS STORY MIGHT CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS...YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED)

A young girl with sandy blonde pigtails tapped her fingers rhythmically on the desk in front of her. Her other hand lazily supported her chin, while her feet were unconsciously tapping to a beat in her mind. With a sigh, she crossed her arms on the table and rested her head in the back of her elbow.

"When is he going to come to class already?" She groaned, rolling her eyes. "He's the professor, of all people. He should've arrived by now."

A boy with messy white hair, who currently had his legs nonchalantly laying on his desk and hands folded in his lap, laughed heartily. "Wow, Maka. Why are you so eager for Professor Stein to get here? All he'll probably do is tell us to dissect a frog. I thought you hated dissection."

"Makaaaaa...CHOP!" A book smashed onto his head, leaving a large bruise.

"Hey! It's the truth!" He protested, rubbing the injured spot.

"That's not what I'm mad about, Soul. You're right, for once, about me hating all the dissection, but he usually arrives to class 5 minutes after the bell rung, at most. It's been 20. Something's up, and it's giving me the chills."

"Well, did you have to Maka Chop me? You know, I think the opposite of the phrase 'actions speak louder than words' should apply to this moment."

Maka raised her book again, a threatening glare making Soul flinch.

"FINE! Fine, okay? Fine. I'm sorry. Put that book away."

The bookworm huffed and put her book on the table, shoving her weapon partner a bit. She looked past Soul and saw a blue-haired boy, Black Star, and a tall woman, Tsubaki, playing 'Rock, Paper, Scissors' with a rather bored atmosphere. Everyone else in the room was throwing bits and pieces of paper at the teacher's desk, other students and at the ceiling; A boy with three stripes on his hair (named Kid), in response to this, growled and had to clench his teeth from having an outburst. Last time he did that, he almost got detention. A tall dirty-blonde next to him, called Liz, was painting her nails; a shorter blonde, named Patty, was gathering all the crumpled paper-balls and trying to color and glue them to make a giraffe (only to wrestle it, break its neck and throw it away); a pink-haired student, named Crona, was trying to shrink into his seat to avoid being hit, and a large being that came out of Crona's back, called Ragnarok, was catching the thrown paper and chucking it harshly back at the original thrower.

In other words, it was absolute chaos.

Suddenly, the door slammed open, with Professor Stein on the other side. Everyone in the room froze, including Maka and Soul. Stein turned the screw in his head, causing eerie clicks to echo throughout the room. It settled in one position with a quiet 'clack', but with the empty silence in the room, it sounded much louder. He wasn't rolling in his chair, meaning Stein was being dead serious; he also wore a confusing expression, a mix of concern, worry, hope, and other non-definable feelings. Maka gulped.

She was right. Something _was_ wrong.

Stein looked up at all the students; some were already sitting at their desk, previously reading a book but now staring at him; some were frozen in ridiculous poses, while others were simply standing. With a grunt, Stein made his way over to his desk and continued standing, glaring at the students who were obviously causing mischief.

Nobody moved - they were too scared to risk making Stein angry.

After a couple seconds, he huffed and narrowed his eyes. "Why are you still up? Get back in your seats." Immediately, the people who were standing ran to their seats, and everyone was settled within 3 seconds.

"Maka, Soul, BlackStar, Tsubaki, Crona, Kid, Liz and Patty. Death wants to see you. Go to his office immediately, asap, pronto." He rushed his words, making everyone in the room uncomfortable. The named kids hurried out of their seats and rushed out of the room.

When they were finally out, they ran like their life depended on it.

"What do you - think he - wants with - us?" Crona worried out loud in between breaths. Maka furrowed her eyebrows.

"I don't know, Crona. I honestly don't know. Whatever it is, though, it must be serious if Stein is so worked up."

Crona shakily and fearfully nodded, continuing to hurry to Death's office.

( **Timeskip!** )

The large group of students limped up the stairs after exiting the guillotine roofs of Death's room. Death was there, pacing, but what confused Maka the most was that he seemed to be hopeful and fearful at the same exact time.

"You - wanted - us?" She panted, clutching her sides in an effort to reduce the pain.

Death turned around and tilted his head. "Oh! Good to see you, Maka! You too, everyone." He was holding a teacup in his overly-large hands, steam slowly rising out of the tea that was inside. He sipped it, then stood there for a moment. He set the teacup down on a nearby table and looked up to the group.

"Yes, I did want to see you." He started. "As you know, you are very great Meisters and Weapons, right? Soul and Maka, BlackStar and Tsubaki, Kid, Liz and Patty, and Crona and Ragnarok, correct?

They all nodded.

"Well, you are now two-star Meisters, on your way to being three-stars. I am also right on that, right?"

They nodded again.

"You are well known around the school for being talented and skilled. Lots of students look up to you."

With a faint blush, they all nodded once again.

He sighed, looking away for a large amount of seconds. _I'm not sure where he's going with this._ Maka thought to herself. _Is he saying we're too talented to be in this school? No, no. He wouldn't do that... would he? He seems troubled yet happy... or is that is normal demeanor? Is he upgrading us to three-stars? AGH! This is so puzzling!_

Kid noticed his dad's discomfort and hesitation, and coughed loudly. This caused Death to jump, looking up at them again. "Oh! Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to stop."

Crona was sweating so much he looked like he ran a 'two-hours-straight' marathon - he was also extremely jumpy and flinched when Death looked his way.

"Right... well. You all know how Kid is my son, right?"

They nodded hesitantly. Why was he bringing this up?

"Well, you may or may not know this, but I have another son. He's much older than Kid, being more than 800 years old."

Everyone in the room gasped. All the color drained from Kid's face, while Patty dramatically jumped up and down in her spot.

"Now, now. Calm down. He is assumed to be dead by most - even you might think he's dead, most likely. I'm strong on this guess because you're the ones who were assumed to kill him."

Maka blinked, widening her eyes. The room erupted into gasps and muttered questions. _WHAT?! We never tried to kill anyone in Death's family. Wait... oh no. What if he brought us here to be expelled for being 'assumed' to kill his older son? Oh, no! No! This can't be true!_ She anxiously started shifting her feet and stretching the end of her coat as she worried these negative thoughts.

"Wait! Calm down!" Death tried to make them relax. "He wasn't civilized... at the time. He was a kishin, so you were supposed to try and defeat him to help save the world."

 _Oh. Nevermind._ She sighed, slightly relieved she wasn't being expelled, but still tense due to everything that was going on. Who was this guy? He certainly didn't ring any bells from that information, so she was stumped on who this man was. She didn't know any of Death's family that turned kishin... then again, she only knew of Kid being in his family, for that matter.

"However, you did not kill him, despite what other people think. I, myself, found his body. It was severely damaged, but he wasn't dead. He was in a coma. In the time he was unconscious, for some weird reason, the 'kishin' part in his soul was slowly leaving. My guess is that being unconscious caused a slight backlash, making the old 'good' in his soul retaliate and try to drive out the evil. I noticed the conflict and helped by partially removing part of the 'kishin' day by day. Removing it all at once might result in me taking out his soul entirely. This has been going on for about a month - he was unconscious the entire time. He woke up just a week ago."

Everyone's faces were now drained of color.

"Is he okay now?" Patty questioned, shifting her feet due to the unsettling suspense.

Death sighed. "Yes and no. Yes, because he has no more traces of kishin left. He is no longer evil or has the overwhelming desire to eat human souls. No, because his personality is kind of, well... crazy. He is extremely paranoid and scared, and wears a ridiculous amount of clothes for comfort. He has many fears, and doesn't do well in situations involving meeting people, being around people, or people in general. He prefers to be alone most of the time. You could also call him shy, if you'd like."

"So he's like the isolated kind of person?" Black Star crossed his arms as he asked this. Death nodded.

"Exactly. That's why I brought you here. I want you to get him to like company and people more than he already does. Due to him being unconscious and taking that nasty defeat, he is rather weak at the moment. He'll need to be re-trained, of course, but he has potential for being very strong. Having him on our side will be great for helping us rid the world of evil kishins. The reason he went mad long ago was because he was insecure and didn't trust most people, so he thought that his fears would go away if he gained power, and so he ate human souls. By letting him become more accustomed to people and helping him get more friends, his insecurity might not be as strong as it is now, and that will disable the ability of him becoming kishin again." He sighed again, his voice becoming sad and soft, quiet enough so that the students could barely hear him. "And being his father, I also want to see him again like he used to be, instead of him as a kishin." He shook his head and regained his normal, goofy self. "I won't force you to help me, but I'd highly appreciate it if you did."

The group of kids stood there, silent. The color was starting to come back to them, but they stayed extremely surprised and filled to the brim with shock. Death had _another_ son? One that turned _kishin_? One that they attempted to **_kill_**? They contemplated whether or not to try and reform this mystery person. Death sat in uneasy silence during this time.

Suddenly, Maka coughed. "I don't know about them," She pointed to the others. "but I'm going to volunteer, if it means I'll be helping the world get rid of kishins." She stood next to Death and turned back to her friends, putting her hands on her hips and smiling hopefully at them.

Soul shrugged and raised his hand lightly. "I guess I'll go too. It'd be uncool if I didn't." He stood next to Maka, stuffing his hands in his pockets and smirking at the others.

Soon, they all started to join.

"Assisting this guy will get all the attention on me! Count me in!"

"He _is_ my older brother, so I'll come. I just hope he's symmetrical..."

"I d-don't k-know how t-to d-d-deal with-th this s-sort o-of thing, b-but I'll h-help."

Death smiled from under his mask. _I hope they'll keep to their word_ , he thought to himself. _I really do. He'll need their help if he wants to stick to his wish and stay sane._

 _(_ **Another Timeskip!** _)_

The students walked down a dark, musty and stone alleyway with Spirit holding a lantern for light. He would glance at every door, and continue walking when it wasn't the right one he was looking for.

After about 7 minutes of constant walking and checking, he firmly stopped at a metal door that was taller than all the others. A bulky lock hung from the doorknob. There was a sign with a name on it, but the letters were scratched out so much that all the group could make out was a faint, "A-r-." There were no windows, or any other decorations or add-ons; only a tall door, a large lock and a sign.

Spirit stared at the door for a while, until he grunted and stepped right in front of it, blocking it. He turned to face the students.

"Now, listen up," he sighed. "as you know, this guy is very lonely. Your job is to help make him more sociable, or at least have more friends than Death and the staff here. He doesn't like people in general, so crowds are one of his worst enemies. One of you will come in and try to bond with him. You'll do this everyday after school, if possible, for 7 days or more. When you're ready to switch, it'll be the next person's turn to do that until at least 3 of you are his friends and he's comfortable being around you. Every time someone changes places, I'll repeat these guidelines in case you forget. Do you understand?"

The students nodded quietly.

He smiled. "Good. Now, there are certain things you need to watch out for to avoid offending him." He crossed his arms. "First off, when you enter, and you see him, you'll most likely remember him with terribly bad memories. Do _not_ scream, or yell, or any other loud exclamations like that. These walls are soundproof so he can't hear anything anyone is saying or doing outside this room. All he can hear is what's going on in there, making everything a bit louder than it truly is.

"In case you become frightened, remember that he is also afraid. He's probably more scared of you than you are of him. Don't try to make him more terrified than he already is. He also remembers all the bad things he did as a kishin, including trying to kill everyone. He regrets it, and mentioning or saying anything like, 'Hey dude! Remember when you tried to engulf the world in madness?' will most likely make him extremely uncomfortable, sad or dislike you a ton.

"If he does try to attack you, remember that he's weak and probably scared. His attacks right now are about as strong as a bear on steroids, but for your standards that's easy enough to withstand or dodge. Do not, I repeat - do NOT attack him. Your attacks are more stronger than his, and although he has the skills, he doesn't have the strength right now, and you might end up harming him. This will most likely make him less eager to become friends with people, which only leads us farther from our goal. If you end up getting in a conversation with him, don't be offended if he says something rude that makes you feel as such. He's not too great with people, which means he's not exactly an expert on interactions with other beings. Basically, don't get on his bad side and don't let him get on yours. Got it?"

There was an eerie silence until they all nodded nervously.

"Now," Spirit coughed from all the talking and explaining he just did. "Who's first this week?"

"Not it!" Everyone yelped suddenly. Maka and Kid were the only ones to remain silent; Maka was looking at the door in thought until Soul lightly shoved her (which made Spirit tense up and force himself to not attack the 'cool' albino).

"Hey! What was that for?" She exclaimed. Soul grunted.

"I don't think daydreaming will help you go in to meet the guy, Maka."

"I wasn't daydreaming!" She brushed her coat and huffed. "Besides, I think Kid should go first. The guy in there _is_ his brother, after all. Family comes first. If Kid doesn't want to, I'll go, but it's up to Kid right now."

The before-mentioned boy was looking at the door as well. His _brother_? Why hadn't he learned until now? It was even worse considering he only learned about having another brother until _after_ the said "brother" was assumed to be dead. Why did Death keep it a secret until now?

After a couple seconds, Kid sighed. "Alright. I'll go first."

Spirit nodded and took out a big key. Kid tried not to notice the four relieved sighs that came from behind him as Maka's father successfully opened the lock with a satisfying "click." He looked at Kid with a questioning glance, as if to say, "Are you sure you're going to be alright?"

Kid nodded and tried to take slow, deep, reassuring breaths. He was surprised to find that he was actually a bit scared - but only a _bit_. The descriptions and warnings didn't help him feel like his brother was exactly "welcoming."

When Spirit responded by moving aside and opening the door, Kid was quickly shoved in and had the door shut on him. He turned around only to find the door was being locked.

 _I'm guessing that's so the person in here doesn't see how many people are outside._ He shrugged it off and looked around. He opened his mouth in amazement.

The room was beautiful, for a bedroom of a person over the age of 800. The walls were beige with red lines near the floor. The floor's carpet was crimson, while a closed door on the right led to, what Kid guessed was, a bathroom. On the beige ceiling there was a bowl-shaped glass with a yellow light-bulb inside it, covered in faint signs that looked like Death's mask. A bed with a wooden frame, a maroon mattress and a tan pillow and sheets sat horizontally in the far left corner, along with a small, beige table that supported a dark red lamp and a sandy-yellow lampshade. A dark brown bookshelf was in the other corner, filled with tons of books of different genres. When Kid looked to his right, he saw a tan dresser with a photograph of some people on it - he couldn't see exactly who from his current angle, but he knew Death was there.

Kid looked ahead again and froze when he saw a figure, his back facing Kid, sitting on hanging bandages off the ceiling and lightly rocking back and forth. The person wore a large amount of clothing, making him appear a bit bigger than he probably was. He wore a red, vertically maroon-striped shirt and dark grey pants. He also wore a ridiculously long tan scarf, seeming to have been wrapped around his neck about 5 times and still long enough to touch the ground. His chin-length hair was pitch black with white markings on each strand to appear like eyes. The hanging bandages actually turned out to be his scarf, which looped once out of a metal hook stuck in the ceiling. He sat on the curve of the scarf as if it were a swing.

He lightly touched the ground with his foot to stop any movement he was doing before, and looked over his shoulder. His skin was pale, and his eyes were crimson and surrounded by a thin, dark line. His pupils were even eyes, being white with small black dots in the center. On his forehead there was an eye looking the same as his two other ones. His expression looked calm.

Kid stood there, eyes wide with horror and shock. Now it all made sense... the explanations, the warnings, the aspects of his personality and backstory. It all made sense - except for one thing:

Why Death never told him Asura was his older brother.

(NOTE: I know Asura is only Kid's brother in the manga, but other than that this story is mostly based on the anime)


	2. Chapter 2

(Thank you for the support, favorites and follows. ^^ I appreciate it a lot. Sorry I haven't been updating often. It's summer and I have a handful of vacations, and during those I've been doing other things than focusing on this story. Also, because of school coming up, please don't expect frequent updates. It depends on what happens. Anyways, enjoy! Of course, I don't own Soul Eater.)

Kid stood in surprised, yet horrified silence. Asura was his older brother? _Asura_? As in, _the_ Asura that tried to kill literally _everyone_ in his path to madness? He couldn't move from overwhelming shock.

However, the more the symmetry-obsessed boy looked at him, he did seem really frail and skinny despite the many layers of his clothing. Along with that, the insanely-mad Asura would at least _try_ to kill him and eat his soul by now (especially since Liz and Patty, his weapons, were behind a thick, locked door); instead, he only looked over his shoulder and stared. He didn't have a burning fire in his eyes, filled with an evil hunger for murder or madness like he saw before. Infact, there wasn't even any visible revenge. The only expressions Kid could easily see in his eyes, from this distance, was calm curiosity, surprise and intense fear.

"Kid?" He muttered, his voice hoarse and rough. Kid nodded softly, eyebrows furrowed in unsure yet alert confusion. "What are you doing here?" Asura turned completely to face him, still sitting on the hanging scarf. He sounded as if he wanted Kid out of the room immediately.

Kid didn't answer. He minced to where the picture frame was in his sight and blinked when he clearly saw the photograph. It was of Death in his 'scary' form, his jagged arm wrapped around a much younger Asura - they were posing for a picture, even though Asura was looking away and trying to shrink out of the view of the camera.

 _So its true_. Kid confirmed mentally with a cringe. _Asura is my older brother. That must've been before Death took on an approachable appearance._ He turned around to see Asura staring at him with uncertainty and suspicion.

"What are you doing here?" He repeated, narrowing his dark-lined eyes. Kid blinked.

"Death, our father, wants me to try and get to know you better." He decided that telling Asura of other people having to meet him might make him less eager to bond, so he planned to save it until the last day before he switched with another person.

The older one in the room 'tched' and released the scarf's grip on the hook, making him drop and stand with a soft 'thud'. Asura was so tall that if he were a few centimeters higher, his head would be touching the ceiling. _So that explains the tall door_. Kid thought. The stretched scarf oddly receded back to it's normal length, as if it were alive. "So you figured it out, eh? I'm your sibling." He appeared to be shaking a little bit.

He waited until after Kid agreed with a quiet, "I know" to continue. "What does Death expect you to do to 'get to know me better?' Talk about symmetry or something?"

Kid ignored the sarcasm and shrugged nonchalantly, trying to act as if he were calm - when on the inside, every alarm and flare were going off. "I don't know much. He only wanted me to bond with you so you can stay sane." He widened his eyes when he realized what he said.

Asura grunted and flinched. "So Death doesn't believe I can do it on my own?" He sounded slightly hurt but hostile at the same time.

The younger brother closed his eyes and sighed, then opened them as he regained his composure. "I'm not going to lie to you. No, he doesn't, I don't think." Asura cringed again at that. "He wouldn't have sent me if he thought otherwise. Think about it, though. Having more friends might help you remove some of your fears."

Asura widened his eyes and blinked. He then narrowed them. "Like what?" He asked, obviously suspicious yet highly interested. "What fears might go away?"

"The fear of being alone, first off. Knowing some of the people you might have to befriend, the fear of betrayal will most likely also leave. Then, your new friends can help you eliminate all your other fears one by one." _Well, there goes_ part _of the plan of waiting to tell him_. He thought with a mental sigh.

Asura softened his hostile gaze after a considerable amount of time. It was obvious he was contemplating it. He made a rough sigh, then plopped onto the floor with his legs crossed. "Fine." He crossed his arms as well.

Kid sighed with relief. _Hopefully he'll be completely willing to become friends with the others... just because I spilled some of the beans doesn't mean he's interested in eating them_ _._ He sat down on the floor with him, making Asura scoot back despite them being far enough already. _Alright...conversation starters. How about interests? That sounds good... enough. Clich_ _é, but good enough.  
_

"So, uh, what's your favorite TV Show?" He started.

Asura huffed lightly. "Does it look like there's a TV in here?"

Kid shook his head. It took all his strength not to have an outburst at the fact Asura was being so rude while he was trying to have a decent conversation. _Death Scythe warned me about his inexperience with people. I shouldn't take it personally._ "I suppose not. Good point."

Asura frowned. He had meant that as a humorous joke, but, sensing the struggle and anger radiating off of Kid, he could tell it didn't seem like one. _Too late now. It'll only make things more awkward if I correct it. Might as well roll with it._ He groaned mentally. _Wow. What an amazing way to start out the first conversation with my brother since I've woken up. This is going to be wooonderful._

The two slowly conversed as time flew by. Kid could tell Asura was highly uneducated in social interaction, due to the fact that he kept staring at Kid without finding it rude and being sarcastic more than talking normally. He also didn't talk much or give many extra details other than the answer to a question. Kid was also hesitant, however. The last time he saw Asura before now was the battle between them. You can only imagine how strange it felt for both of them to try and become friends with your major former enemy. The situation was mostly uncomfortable. Asura didn't agree, watch, read or do some of the things Kid did. Sadly, to Kid's high disappointment, he also didn't share his enthusiasm for symmetry. Awkward silences also slipped into the conversation, lasting for about a few seconds or maybe a few minutes. Asura didn't explain anything when something led to his dark past, and he changed the subject swiftly before Kid could respond. Either way, Kid learned more about Asura (not a lot) while Asura learned more about Kid just the same.

As it turns out, Asura wanted to remain being sane after he woke up from unconsciousness and said he would try a lot of options to help him meet that goal. The piercing, stabbing feeling of constant fear hurt him. He would feel it at least once everyday, at different times. The least painful feeling was when he felt like he was suffocating, with no break or pause; the worst was when he felt as if someone was grasping his heart, then squeezing it and twisting it as hard as they could, making him gasp and groan. Asura would sometimes experience these when he didn't even know he was scared. Having madness inside him soothed or numbed the torture more than he'd like to admit, although he knew that being mad forced him to do terrible things he had never wanted to dream of doing before. Asura was faced with a terrible decision - he either had to deal with the intense pain and stay stable, where he wouldn't risk being killed, or become mad and have no more fear and no more pain; the only catch is that, to do so, he would have to eat human souls, which means murder, and having to run away and go into hiding to _prevent_ being killed. He didn't want to be afraid anymore. It only scared him more to think about what kind of pains he hadn't felt, and if he would feel them more harshly than before. Some nights, although he absolutely hated he was like this, he would cry softly and silently to sleep because it was so agonizing. Then he would have a nightmare that felt too real, and only made his fears worse (if that was even possible). Of course, he hadn't told Kid any of this. He knew the younger reaper either, one, didn't care, or would, two, use all of this to his own advantage and try to kill him with it. Fear was his weakness; there was no way he would tell anyone he didn't trust with any of that.

A couple of loud knocks that shook the door made Kid flinch, but made Asura almost leap out of his own skin as he jumped a few feet backwards and slammed into the wall behind him - _hard_. At this, the asymmetrical boy widened his eyes and pursed his lips inward to avoid laughing. Asura noticed this and simply glared daggers as he tried to calm his racing heart.

"Who is it?" Kid answered back, getting up and standing near the door.

There was nothing in response.

Kid's expression faltered a little until he remembered the door was soundproof. He facepalmed mentally and turned around to face Asura. "I think it's time for me to go now." Honestly, he was relieved that he could finally leave. He was, at least 888 percent, happy to go.

Asura nodded and stood. Kid thought he could see a little disappointment in his eyes, but if so, he covered it up quickly as his scarf looped into the hook on the ceiling - on its own. He sat on the curve of it again and crossed his legs, resting his hands in his lap.

"I'll be back tomorrow." Kid focused on the door again and knocked almost as hard as the person before did. After a few seconds, the door opened just enough for Kid to slip out of it. It was shut and locked immediately after. Sid was on the other side, holding a lantern like Spirit did before.

Kid instantly exploded into an raging fit once the door was shut.

"ASURA?! SERIOUSLY?! NOONE EVER TOLD ME ASURA, WHO IS A FORMER PSYCHOPATHIC AND INSANE KISHIN TRICLOPS THAT TRIED TO KILL ALL OF US AT LEAST ONCE, _AND_ SWALLOWED HIS WEAPON WHOLE AND VOMITED HIM UP WHENEVER HE NEEDED TO USE HIM, WAS MY OLDER BROTHER THIS WHOLE TIME! THE FACT HE BRUTALLY STABBED ME IN THE CHEST WITH HIS FREAKISH SUPER-STRETCHED FINGER - HIS _FINGER_! - AND KNEW I WAS HIS YOUNGER BROTHER JUST PROVES HOW CRUEL AND COLD HE IS! WHO STABS THEIR YOUNGER BROTHER WITH THEIR FINGER? IN FACT, WHO PURPOSEFULLY HURTS THEIR YOUNGER SIBLING WITH THE INTENT TO _KILL_ THEM? NOT ANYONE I KNOW, _THAT'S_ FOR SURE! HOW ARE YOU EXPECTING ME TO BOND WITH THAT... THAT... _THING_?! I'M NOT GOING TO TRUST HIM, EVEN IF HE IS MY OLDER BROTHER! HE DIDN'T EVEN LIKE SYMMETRY! NOT ONE BIT! _SYMMETRY_! WHO IN THE WORLD DOESN'T LIKE SYMMETRY?! I DON'T KNOW WHICH IS WORSE, KNOWING ASURA IS MY OLDER BROTHER OR KNOWING HE DOESN'T LIKE SYMMETRY! WHEN I BROUGHT UP THE SAID BEAUTIFUL SUBJECT, HE DIDN'T SMILE OR WIDEN HIS EYES OR SIGH IN JOY OR **ANYTHING**! NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT, HE DIDN'T SMILE AT ALL! HE ONLY FROWNED OR STAYED NEUTRAL! THE ONLY EMOTIONS I SAW FROM HIM WERE SARCASM AND **_NONE_**!" He screamed 'none' at the top of his lungs, emitting an large voice crack.

Sid stood there in silence. Kid panted hard, having got that all out in one breath. He had flailed his arms and ruffled his hair during his outrage, so his hair was now messy and fluffed up. He glared at Sid as if he tilted a painting slightly to the right and didn't bother to fix it.

"You done?" Sid raised an eyebrow. Kid was too out of breath and tired to even reply, although he did put his hands on his knees and stopped glaring. Sid nodded. "I'll take that as a yes." He then used his free hand to take small, white noise-cancelling earbuds out of his ears and stuff them in his pocket to throw away later.

Once Kid had caught his breath, Sid started walking down the long stone hallway with the young reaper right beside him. "Now that you aren't acting like a two-year-old," Kid looked up and shot a quick glare at him. "how'd it go?" Sid asked, stuffing the giant key into his pocket. "You've been in there for five hours."

Kid scoffed. His voice sounded hoarse and rough, as if sandpaper had rubbed against it. "Five hours? It felt like eight."

Sid sighed. "That was expected. I'm guessing it was awkward, right?"

Kid nodded. "He was quiet most of the time, and I barely got a handful of useful information from him...I don't feel very bonded to him at all. It feels like I only talked to him, nothing more. Not like I'd want to bond with that _creature_. I have a feeling this will be a very long week... I completely regret choosing to go first." He groaned.

Sid shrugged. "You get used to his attitude and personality after a week of having to visit him every day to bring his food in. Not that he eats it... although, he's not too bad once you actually get to know him." He continued walking down the long, stone hallway with a tired and unamused Kid following right behind him.

* * *

Maka chewed her salad quietly, staring at the table she shared with her friends in thought.

Soul, who was sitting next to her, noticed this and raised an eyebrow. "What's up with you? It's lunchtime, Maka. You shouldn't sulk like that." He took a bite out of a ham sandwich, still looking at his meister. Next to Soul sat Black*Star, who scarfed down everything he could get his hands on. Tsubaki sat next to him, happily eating some well-made Japanese udon noodle soup with traditional Japanese chopsticks. Crona quietly poked at his chicken bits with a fork as he sat next to the kind woman, and Ragnarok (who came out of Crona's chest) ate anything he could get his slobbery tongue on, along with sneaking a few bits from other people's plates. Liz and Patty both sat on the other side of the table, eating boiled potatoes and tons of hamburgers, respectively.

Maka blinked, snapping out of her thoughts, then glared at Soul. "I'm not sulking. I was only thinking about who the person behind the door might be." She lowered her voice at the last sentence, as if she didn't want anyone to hear her. She continued to eat her salad in silence.

Soul was about to question her strange behavior again until he looked behind him to see Kid walking towards them with uncharacteristically messy hair, clenched fists and a troubled expression. Everyone at the small table who had a happy and cheery atmosphere before now looked worried and confused.

Patty was the only one who remained joyful. She shot up from her seat and waved, still chewing her food. "HEYA, KID! OVER HERE!" She screamed, sending hamburger bits onto the floor and across the table. Crona sighed, putting his fork down and slowly shoving his plate away.

"I wasn't hungry anyways," Crona muttered, to which Ragnarok responded by picking up the chicken bits with his tongue and scooping them into his mouth. Liz gagged at this; Ragnarok simply snickered rudely.

"Looks like your older brother gave you a nightmare in there. What happened?" Soul asked.

Kid scoffed as he walked past Soul. "He _is_ one." He sat down next to Patty. "I'm already regretting deciding to go first. Patty, please shut your mouth when you chew. I don't want to see your food as you eat it." The said pistol didn't seem bothered, but she completed his request anyway to prevent making Kid more upset than he was. "Anyways, it's not what he _did -_ or it is, I don't know anymore _-_ it's who he _is_ that's making me so...so... bothered."

Maka had a mix of concern and wonder plastered on her face. ' _Who he is'? Who could make Kid so upset just by existing?_ Part of her didn't want to know, by the way people have been reacting to this person recently.

Liz smiled sympathetically and encouragingly and handed him a black bowl of neatly-made chicken soup. "We saved your food. It's still nice and hot. How about you calm down for a sec, maybe fix your hair, and tell us all about this mystery guy, eh, Kid?" She took out a comb from her pocket and handed it to him as well as the soup.

Kid stared at the food as if it were from another planet. He then lightly shoved it away, only for Ragnarok to snatch it and slurp it all down within seconds. "I don't have an appetite anymore, but thank you, Liz. Just thinking of the guy makes my blood boil..." He did, however, pick up the comb and start brushing his hair with it.

Everyone at the small table passed nervous glances at each other, eyebrows furrowed in worry. Only when Kid was finished combing his hair did they look back at him to listen contently. Kid handed the comb back to Liz, who stuffed it right back in her pocket.

Kid sighed, closing his eyes to try and regain his composure. The suspense and silence was so thick that you could cut it with a butter knife. Then, he opened them and looked at his friends. Soul raised an eyebrow, picking up his glass to take a sip of his coke -

Kid spoke in a quiet voice so other students around them couldn't hear. "It was Asura."

\- only to choke on it and drop the glass, sending it shattering into a thousand pieces on the floor. Coke suddenly sputtered from his mouth as he coughed, and the brown, fizzy liquid spilled from his nose. Maka took out her book (that she somehow had) and slammed it into his back, making him gasp and cough out the rest of the drink. Students around them instantly looked at their table to see what the commotion was about, gasping and widening their eyes. Ragnarok, seeing this out of the corner of his eye and deciding to do something nice for once, receded back into Crona and came out the other end, sprouting out of his back. "Hey! What's your problem, staring at someone like that?! Mind your own business! Geez, and you all call _me_ rude!" He shouted, making all the students glare at him and turn the other way slowly. Ragnarok smirked and turned around, resting his hands on Crona's head. "T-Thank, y-you, Ragnar-rok." Crona thanked him, his answer breathless from the news. The black being simply nodded, paying attention to Kid again.

"A-Are you serious, Kid?" Maka blinked, her eyes wide with shock. Tsubaki handed Soul all the napkins she could to help him clean his face and nose. "Asura?! But... that isn't p-possible! The c-courage from that punch I gave him... it should've killed him. Surely you're kidding, r-right?!"

Kid shushed her, putting a finger to his mouth. "Shhhhhh! I don't want other students to find out." He sighed. "But...I only wish he was dead, Maka. As dad said, and from what I saw, he didn't die." He gripped the table edge, gritting his teeth. "I don't know how father finds any _potential_ in that monster. He's a beast that can't be tamed, not a child who did wrong and is forgiven for his actions." He growled. "And that's not all... he's my brother, as well." He shuddered.

Black*Star laughed obnoxiously loud. Everyone at their table knew this laugh as one he made before coming up with a plan that mostly never worked. "Kid, you're going to switch with me today!" He exclaimed. Kid narrowed his eyes, as if asking, " _Why?_ "

The ninja smirked, pointing in the air. "I'll go to that room of his... Tsubaki, you'll come too! I'll sneak you in, carrying you in weapon form, and when he least expects it, YAHOO! I'LL KILL THAT KISHIN! HE WON'T EVEN SEE ME COMING!" Black*Star shouted and laughed, making everyone in the entire lunch room groan (and some teachers passing by).

 _I'm glad he used 'kishin' instead of 'Asura'... at least Black*Star has_ some _logic in not attracting unwanted attention to our mission. Although, Asura apparently isn't a kishin, so I guess that isn't true._ Maka thought, her mind fuzzy due to the shocking news.

Tsubaki tilted her head. "Don't you remember what Death Scythe said, Black*Star? He told us specifically not to hurt him. If we try to kill him, we could end up hurt, or even worse, _he_ could. I also don't think Death would appreciate us not following the rules, either."

Black*Star scoffed. "Who cares about that old fart? I have my own rules and my own way of doing things! Anything I do or say is always the best choice because it was made by _me_!" He laughed again, causing the group to sigh at his stubbornness and over-prideful self. They all made a note to put him at the end of the list of people to bond with Asura.

Just the thought of the guy made everybody go immediately dead-silent in disgust, anger, hate and fear. Even Tsubaki and Crona seemed upset (although the latter was more upset with fear than anger).

Suddenly, after the group ate in silence for a few minutes, the bell rang. If the cafeteria could get any louder, it did. Students packed their lunch bags and trashed their garbage. Then they said their goodbyes to their friends and gathered their things to leave and go to their afternoon classes.

Black*Star sighed, placing his arms behind his head and crossing his legs on the table with a prideful smirk. He liked to stay long after the bell rung to, one, avoid going to class, two, be by himself and think about how great he is, and three, fight passerby's with the sole purpose of knowing _he_ won, and _they_ lost. Much to his surprise, he heard humming beside him. His smile faltered a bit, and curiosity made him open one eye slightly to see Maka sitting at the table, reading a book. He dropped his arms and straightened his legs, looking at Maka with shock. No doubt it had already been five minutes since the bell rang and way past everyone else left.

"Maka?" He asked, checking to see if she was really here. The young scythe-meister turned and nodded to him in response. He closed his eyes, rubbed them, and opened them again to still see Maka sitting there with her book. He did the same process over and over, making Maka more and more confused. He then decided to pinch his arm, and upon seeing her still there, he took his water bottle (which, being the lazy person he is, he hadn't recycled or packed yet) and poured it all over himself. When he wiped his face and eyes and still saw her there, he slapped her lightly across the cheek.

Maka responded by swiftly slamming the book sideways onto his nose. "Maka... CHOP!"

Black*Star grabbed his face and groaned, almost a hundred percent sure he got a nosebleed from that. Sure enough, when he removed his hands, blood stained his gloves and he could tell he probably had a bruise.

"What was that for?!" He exclaimed with a tiny bit of anger rising up to his throat. Maka huffed, focusing on her book again.

"I could ask the same thing. Why'd you slap me?"

"Because it isn't normal for you to stay after the bell! Usually you're the first one to leave, being the bookworm you are!"

Maka shrugged and looked over her shoulder to see the very last student leaving the cafeteria. Then, with a satisfied smirk, she turned to Black*Star and closed her book, setting it aside. "I have something important to talk to you about, Black*Star."

The blue-haired ninja raised an eyebrow, then smiled wide. "Anything that has to do with me is always importa-"

"Save the pride-filled remarks for later. This is serious."

He groaned, tilting his head back and covering his eyes with his hands. "This is so _boring_."

Maka sighed through her nose. "Pay attention. I need to know I can trust you on this."

Rolling his eyes, the boy slumped over onto the table, turning his head to look at Maka. "Just get on with it."

"Promise me you won't tell anyone about Asura."

Black*Star narrowed his eyes. "But how am I going to be able to let people know how big of a star I am if I can't tell them I'm going to kill Asura?"

"There are other ways to prove you're a big star, even though everyone knows it already. You aren't going to kill Asura to prove it, though. Everyone besides me, you, Soul, Tsubaki, Crona, Ragnarok, Kid, Liz and Patty think that Asura is dead. If you spread the word, people will get curious, and everything will fall apart."

"Who made you in charge of what I do?"

"I'll tell papa, Professor Stein or Death. They'll stop you from participating."

"UGH. Why do you always have to go and ruin everything, tattletale? Fine, I promise I won't tell anyone about Asura. There. Happy? Good. Ok." He put his hands behind his head and crossed his legs again.

Maka nodded, accepting that as a decent answer. She stuffed her book into her bag, then gathered her things and headed to class, waving goodbye to Black*Star. "I hope you haven't forgotten what Stein told you last time you were late, Black*Star. What was it? Oh, right. He'd said he'd give you detention for the rest of the school year, didn't he?" She called out to him as she walked away, smiling when she saw the boy's face pale and fall out of his seat.

"I hope he keeps his promise." Maka muttered to herself. She laughed. "He better keep it."


	3. Chapter 3

((AH I'M SO SORRY I HAVEn'T POSTED IN A WHILE, LIFE HAD A GRIP ON mE AND GAVE ME WriTER's BLOCK. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE SUPPORT AnYWAY, IT REALLY HELPS MORE THAN YOU'D THINK AaaAAH. *dies*))

"Why haven't you ever told me Asura was my brother?"

"Was there ever a need to?"

Kid huffed, glaring at his father in annoyance. He was avoiding the question, as he had been for the past fifteen minutes they've been talking. Sitting neatly at a skull-shaped tea-table in the Death Room and sipping tea, Kid was starting to become frustrated at his father's constant conversation-changers, questions as responses, distractions, and fakings of "Oh, I'm sorry. What did you say? I couldn't hear you."

"You're not answering my original question, father. Why haven't you ever told me Asura was my brother?"

"Why do you want to know?" He tilted his head to the left a little. "I don't see why it's so important."

"How could it be _not_ important?! Asura, the maniacal kishin and bringer of madness-"

" _Former_ maniacal kishin and bringer of madness." Death corrected.

"-is my brother and you never _told_ me?!" Kid growled, his frustration only growing. "Which also brings the question of why you even decided to _reform him._ "

"I thought that was already answered." Death straightened his head. "By me."

"No. You explained that it would be good if he was reformed because he'd be a strong part of DWMA's team, but did you ever _once_ think that if this plan fails, and he goes insane, we would have to repeat the end of the world all over again?"

"Of course." Death looked slightly offended that his son would think of him to not consider it. "I thought of it all the time when he was in a coma for a month. I think you're forgetting though that he learned his lesson. Knowing how embarrassed he was of his defeat when he confronted me after waking from his coma, I doubt he'll try attacking DWMA again anytime soon. Don't forget he's also very, very weak at the moment."

"I haven't." Kid huffed, tightening his grip on the teacup in his hands. "I just don't understand how you could even forgive him for what he did."

Death's expression softened, and he reached across the table and patted Kid's head eight times for good measure. "I understand how you feel, Kid. Sometimes there will be people in this world that you wish were never born." He retracted his hand, wrapping it around his teacup. He raised it and sipped, glad that the steam rising from the cup slightly fogged his sad expression. He set the cup down, coughing. "And I haven't forgiven him yet for what he's done. Give me at least six months before you start expecting that."

"Then why aren't you punishing him for it?" Kid narrowed his eyes.

"This _is_ his punishment. Him being alive may seem like a miracle or gift, but it's more of a privileged second chance. He deserves to live rather than die, the reason being that while he's alive - and the fact that he's technically immortal, like all shinigami - he'll have to deal with the embarrassment, guilt, sorrow, and regret for all the rest of his eternal life, and that is really the only punishment you can give to a person with such a crime being done." Death looked down in his teacup. "The people of Death City will abhor him for who knows how long. They'll loathe him... despise him... I wouldn't put it past me to guess they might even go so far as to ban him from shops, local parks, etc."

"Serves him right..." Kid muttered before sipping his tea. Death looked up at him, mixed emotions in the holes of his mask where his eyes would be.

"... Kid, do you even _plan_ on giving him a chance?"

There was a long pause before Kid responded calmly, "No. _You_ haven't even forgiven him yet."

"At least I'm _planning_ to." Death sighed, pushing his cup aside. "Anyways, I have to speak to Spirit for a moment, if you'll excuse me. If you have any other questions you'd like to ask, my door is always open." He then started walking down the long hallway, passing by Kid. The younger shinigami stared at the table, lost in thought.

After a minute or so, Kid suddenly froze, an angermark appearing on his temple. He spun around, yelling, "Hey, wait a moment! You still didn't answer my earlier question!"

But Death was long gone.

Kid grumbled under his breath, standing up. "Oh well... actually, now that I think about it, I suppose it would've been better if I had never known before-hand." He looked at the spot where his father used to be, sighing. "Dad must've known I would have gotten upset over it... I would have done the same thing. _Man_ , he's good."

( _ **Timeskip to a few weeks later!**_ )

As Kid slipped into the doorway of Asura's room - and it shutting behind him immediately - he wasn't surprised when he saw Asura laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling in an emotionless manner. The only movement made was his slanted, red eyes that flickered apace towards the younger figure. They stayed fixed onto Kid, his cold stare affecting him not.

Kid spoke no greeting, unlike how he normally would. The conversation with his father of the being before him were still swirling through his mind, even if they occurred two weeks before this moment.

This brought up the mental reminder that his turn was nearly over. With two weeks having passed, he was more than ready to let his turn go on to someone else.

But was he emotionally ready? He still didn't feel comfortable being around him, and from the cautious look he just gave, it didn't seem that Asura felt any different. Yes, Kid was slightly used to him, but he didn't feel as if Asura were a brother. He felt on-edge being near him, as if he would lash out unexpectedly. He was ready to block in case of that, but he still didn't trust Asura whatsoever.

The opposing shinigami felt the same. Whether it be the fact his younger brother kept sending him hatred-filled glares when he "wasn't looking" (his third eye could still see, even if his two eyes below it weren't focused on Kid), or that the general ambiance in the room darkened when Kid entered the room, Asura wasn't anywhere near feeling close or safe around his younger sibling. Not only that, but flashbacks of Kid blasting his two weapons at him with lethal lasers popped up randomly when he least expected it; this didn't help reassure the fear that Kid would kill him at some point.

Asura narrowed his eyes at his brother. He sat up, his raven-black hair falling down to cover one of his eyes. Silence filled the room, as it had been doing more recently - after two weeks of talking to the same person in the same way, you start to run out of conversation topics to talk about.

Kid coughed, covering his mouth with his fist. "So. How have you been...?"

"Same as usual." Asura started messing with a loose strand of cloth on his bedsheets that happened to come loose. "I sleep, I think, I read, I eat, and the cycle repeats." He paused, then chuckled coldly. "Not like I _have_ any other choice, do I?"

Kid shook his head. "I suppose not."

Another silence found its way into the room.

Like always.

Asura sighed gruffly, plopping onto his back. He muttered something under his breath, continuing to stare at the ceiling.

Kid narrowed his eyes, then broke the silence. "Asura."

The older shinigami turned his head slightly towards him. He didn't speak, but made a small 'hm' to clarify that he was listening.

"Why did the dinosaur cross the road?"

Asura blinked, his eyebrows furrowing. "What?"

"Why did the dinosaur cross the road?" Kid repeated.

Asura narrowed his eyes warily, but replied, "Uhm... I don't... know? Why _did_ the dinosaur cross the road?"

"Because chickens didn't evolve yet."

Another silence. _Does he think I'm five?_ Asura thought, scrunching his face up in confusion. _What is he doing...?_

"What happens when Peter Pan flies a plane?" Kid sighed.

"... what?" Asura blinked again, sitting up. "Wait, what're yo-"

"They Neverland."

Asura tried to resist the urge to smile and instead put on a face of confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Telling jokes." Kid responded. "They're fun, you should try it."

"No." He refused. "It's idiotic and childish."

Kid shrugged. "Alright then. What's the definition of a will?"

"... what. You don't know what a will i-"

"It's a dead giveaway."

"Yes, exac-..." Upon realizing it was a pun, he groaned and face-palmed. "That was _really_ bad."

"I heard somebody broke their finger, but on the other hand they were fine."

Asura smiled, peering out from behind his hand. "Stop it. I'm going to go deaf."

"Smaller babies may be delivered by a stork but heavier ones need a crane."

He chuckled. "Okay, okay, I get it. You can stop now-"

"When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds."

He covered his face with both of his hands, groaning. "Oh my goodness. Stop it, Kid. I get it already."

"You know, pencils could be made with erasers on both ends." Kid had been emotionless the whole time, but this time he smiled. "But what would be the point?"

Asura glanced at Kid with a look of "are you serious?"

"Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana."

He groaned again, but there was a hint of amusement. "Are you ever going to _stop_?"

"No." Kid shrugged. "But did you know that claustrophobic people can solve problems better when thinking outside the box?"

There was no response other than the soft murmuring under Asura's breath.

"As it turns out, there's no kidney bank in England. They have a Liverpool, though."

Asura laughed. "Okay, fine. I can't believe I'm doing this, but..." He paused, then groaned. "Oh, nevermind. I knew a joke about amnesia, but now I can't remember it."

Kid snickered, covering his mouth with his hand. "Okay, that was actually pretty good."

The older shinigami chuckled. "Where are average things made?"

"I don't know. Where?"

"In the satisfactory."

"Really?" Kid grinned. "Well, I heard a girl quit a doughnut factory because she was fed up with the hole business."

Asura burst out laughing.

Needless to say, when Kid left the room that day, he made a mental note to help remind him to look up more puns later.

((okay i'm super duper sorry hah i just have this slight headcanon that Asura lowkey likes puns and play-on-words jokes but doesn't ever admit it because he wants to keep what he thinks is his "dignity" pFFt

and yes I did have to take most of the puns from .com because I can't come up with puns that easily. uvu))


End file.
